One illustrative application of speech recognition technology applies to the workplace. Speech recognition systems have simplified many tasks particularly for a user in the workplace by permitting the user to perform hands-free communication with a computer as a convenient alternative to communication via conventional peripheral input/output devices. For example, a warehouse or inventory worker user could wear a wireless wearable terminal having a speech recognition system that permits communication between the user and a central computer system so that the user can receive work assignments and instructions from the central computer system. The user could also communicate to the central computer system information such as data entries, questions, work progress reports and work condition reports. In a warehouse or inventory environment, a user can be directed (through an instruction from the central computer system or visually by means of a display) to a particular work area that is labeled with a multiple-digit number (check-digit) such as “1-2-3” and asked to speak the check-digit. The user would then respond with the expected response “1-2-3”. (Note that a “check-digit” can be any word or sequence of words, and is not limited to digits.)
Other such examples of communication between a user and speech recognition system are described in U.S. Patent Application No. 2003/0154075 and include environments where a wearable or portable terminal is not required such as in an automobile or a telephone system; environments that are not in a warehouse such as in a managed care home, nursing home, pharmacy, retail store, and office; voice-controlled information processing systems that process, for example, credit card numbers, bank account numbers, social security numbers and personal identification numbers; other applications such as command and control, dictation, data entry and information retrieval applications; and speech recognition system features such as user verification, password verification, quantity verification, and repeat/acknowledge messages. The inventions presented here can be used in those applications. In using a speech recognition system, manual data entry is eliminated or at the least reduced, and users can perform their tasks faster, more accurately and more productively.